White House Wins on Bolton

White House Press Briefing, the Bolton nomination:

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, we respect Senator Voinovich's decision, but there are many people who agree with the President that John Bolton is the right person at the right time for this important position. We appreciate that Senator Voinovich is allowing his vote to proceed to the floor of the United States Senate, and we are confident that the Senate will confirm his nomination.

John Bolton is a strong voice for reform at a time when the United Nations is beginning efforts to move forward on reform. He is exactly the kind of person we need at the United Nations. He brings a lot of unique qualifications to the position and a great amount of experience and passion, and sometimes a little bluntness. But the President believes that's exactly what is needed at the United Nations during this time of reform.

Q You say you appreciate Senator Voinovich allowing it to go to the floor, but he did so, tagging it with just a blistering attack. Do you think that that level of denigration of John Bolton as the person who should be at the United Nations for the United States hurts the nomination when it gets to the floor?

MR. McCLELLAN: No. And in fact, we think that the issues that were raised have been addressed -- by John Bolton, himself, and by many highly respected individuals who have worked very closely with John Bolton in the past. Look at comments from Secretary Baker and former Attorney General Meese, and former United Nations Ambassador Jeane Kirkpatrick, and former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger -- these are all highly respected individuals. Ambassador Kirkpatrick was someone who brought a strong voice to the United Nations. John Bolton is going to bring a strong voice to the United Nations to make sure that it is results-oriented and effective in the important work that it is doing, and to make sure that much-needed reform is implemented at the United Nations.

I think the American people want to see reform at the United Nations, and John Bolton has the experience and the ability to get things done at the United Nations. And if you look at his experience -- let me just point this out -- he has been Under Secretary of State for Arms Control, under this President; he was the Assistant Secretary of State for International Organizations, under the administration of former President Bush; and he has accomplished many great things. He has been our primary point person when it comes to combating the spread of weapons of mass destruction. He worked to build a coalition of 60-plus nations to move forward on the President's proposal for the proliferation security initiative. That is one of the most dangerous threats that we face in this day and age -- or the most dangerous threat we face in this day and age. That is a high priority for the United Nations.

He's also someone who was the chief negotiator for the Moscow Treaty, where we have now reached an agreement with Russia and we're significantly reducing our nuclear arsenals. He is someone who was involved in making sure Libya got rid of its weapons of mass destruction and weapons of mass destruction programs. He is someone who has been a strong advocate for ending anti-Semitism in this world. And he is someone who's accomplished many great things, and those are the kind of results-oriented people we need at the United Nations at this time.

Q So you don't think Voinovich will have any effect on other Republicans if they can get the votes together --

MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, we are confident that the Senate will move forward and confirm his nomination when it reaches the floor. And the sooner the better, because we've got a lot of important work to get done and many important reforms to implement at the United Nations.
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Bolton's nomination making it to the Senate is a victory for the Bush administration and bodes well for reform at the UN.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has the option of sending the nomination to the Senate with a positive or negative recommendation -- or none at all.

Committee members agreed to give no recommendation.

(AP)- By not recommending that senators approve Bolton's nomination, the committee delivered a slap at President Bush in one of the first big battles of his second term.

"It doesn't appear that Mr. Bolton has the confidence of the majority of this committee," said Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware, the senior Democrat on the panel. "And I would suggest that it may be worth the president's interest to take note of that."

I would suggest that Biden take note that in spite of the Democrats' unsubstantiated yet brutal attacks on John Bolton's character and demeanor, they failed to derail the nomination in committee.

The Bush Administration stood firm and won this battle.